The Other Side of Norrington
by PhoenixEternal
Summary: this is a short little prologue about James Norrington and his family taking place before PotC. this goes along with another PotC story that me and a few others have written, but have not uploaded onto here yet.


**AN:** Ok, so I was really bored during school, and this is what I came up with. Its sort of a back history to James Norrington for a story that me and a few others are writing together. In the story (which I might be able to upload onto here soon) James has a daughter by the name of Max…but she's a pirate on Jack's crew! So the story turns out to be our own version of At World's End and its pretty much amazing. But yeah…here's a bit of a prologue concerning James Norrington, and the wife that he no longer has.

**Disclaimer:** No, I don't own PotC or any of the characters. I just steal them and make them do what I want. Max and Johanna, however, are completely original characters, although Max is not mine either.

Johanna Maxine Tradewell had been a young maiden born into the traditionalist upper-class society of London. Her father was a prominent merchant sailor; trading exotic and expensive things in far off lands for the king himself. Her mother was a seamstress for the nobles, and her hands had woven the threads of some of the finest gowns in all of England.

Johanna was the youngest offive siblings and so she knew what was expected of her: wed a prominent Englishman and begin a family of her own. And such an Englishman she did find.

His name was James Ardal Norrington, a promising new recruit to the British Royal Navy. His family name was quite well respected, with a line of men who had shown their devotion to England through service to the king.Handsome and prominent, he was often the subject of talk amongst many of the single women of London (and some of the married ones as well). Young James was exactly the type of man that any of them would dream to have.

But it was Johanna that he had chosen to be his wife. From the instant he saw her shining ruby hair, her sparkling emerald eyes...James knew that this was the woman he would spend the rest of his life with.

Their marriage became quite the talk of the town, for everyone admitted what a perfect couple they made. No two people had ever been meant more for each other. The love between the two was clearly evident, and they seldom spent a moment apart. The only thing that could possibly rival the love they had for each other was the love that they shared for the sea. The Norrington's had all devoted themselves to lives upon the open waves, and Johanna fit into her married new well. There was nothing that she preferred more then to be aboard a sailing ship in the company of her husband.

That was, of course, until the birth of their daughter. The baby girl named Maxine Anne had immediately stolen her parents' captivation from the moment she was born. James had even requested a month off from service in order to spend time with his new daughter.

When James was off on his commission, keeping order upon the seas, Johanna would wait for him. She would keep the bedroom window that faced the bay open at all times, looking out upon the horizon, so that she would know the instant of his return. And every time, as soon as she saw the white sails of his ship, she would rush down to the docks, with Maxine in her arms, to greet him.

After some time, Johanna and Maxine were permitted to accompany James on a trip across the Atlantic to the Caribbean nations. They were headed to Port Royal, the British Navy's capital there, for a special occasion. James Norrington's promotion to sub-leuitenant.

Johanna was thrilled for him, knowing just how much the promotion meant. Johanna's mother made two of the most beautiful dresses of azure blue, one of which the smallest that she had ever sewn. Young Maxine, who was turning two now, would have a dress that perfectly matched her mother's for her father's promotion ceremony. Of course, both James and Johanna knew that getting the stubborn toddler to wear the dress would probably be more trouble than it was worth.

But it turned out that the need for Maxine to where the dress would never come. Not a few days after their ship had reached Caribbean water had another set of sails been spotted. But these sails were not white: they were black. And clearly seen flying high above the mast was the ominous Jolly Roger. Pirates!

Norrington now had a job to do. He had to help in the defending of this ship, and also in the defending of his family. Or he was going to die trying. As the pirate ship loomed up beside them, they all knew that they couldn't fire the canons, not with passengers onboard below deck. It was far too risky, and it was not a chance the Navy was willing to take. And so their canon ports remained closed and unarmed. The battle would have to be fought on deck.

The pirates seemed to prefer this anyway, and so as soon as they were within range, they swung over to the Navy ship. Many were shot down before even reaching the deck, but the ones that weren't immediately raised their pistols and scimitars and advanced. Norrington did his best to fight them off, as did the rest of the crew. But they were severely outnumbered, and unprepared for an attack of this scale.

Norrington was focusing on one thing and one thing only: protecting Johanna and Maxine. They were below deck, locked away in his quarters. But it would only take one pirate to get past him to change that.

When it seemed that the Navy was unable to hold them off any longer, the pirate captain came onboard. At the point of swords and guns, the Naval officers were forced to their knees in the center of the deck, surrendering their weapons over to the pirate terrorists. The rest of the ship was scoured and looted. Norrington closed his eyes and prayed that Johanna and Maxine would not be discovered, but his prayers were shattered by the sound of his wife's scream. Holding her daughter, Johanna was forced onto the up the steps and unto the deck. Before anyone could stop her, she rushed over to James, holding herself and their child against him in fear. James did his best to offer his comfort to her, but there was little he could do. Maxine began to cry, unsure of what was going on around her.

Seeing this, the pirate captain pulled Johanna away from James, leaving Maxine within the protective arms of her father. The pirate gripped Johanna's red hair tightly and pulled her head back so that her neck was clearly exposed. He pressed the cold steel blade of his sword against it. Johanna sobbed from fear.

"So this wench belongs to you, does she?" The pirate asked of James, but gave him no time to answer. He moved his dirty face only an inch away from hers and eyed her greedily, holding her tightly against him. "And what be your name?"

Norrington watched, enraged and helpless, as the pirate taunted his wife before him. He found her pleading eyes and willed her to stay strong.

Johanna attempted to shy away from the uncomfortable closeness but answered the pirate shakily. "Jo-Johanna Norrington…"

"Ah. And so you're married to the famous James Norrington, then." The captain said, as he sneered over at James. "That alone be warrant for your death."

"No!" James and the crew shouted, and he attempted to get to his feet. But he was forced back down by the surrounding pirates. Maxine still continued to cry, and Norrington held her to him. He looked up to the captain, seething yet fearful. "I swear…if you harm her…"

"Harm her?" The pirate laughed. "Why would I ever want to harm the wife of the sea's most notorious pirate killer? Surely not for vengeance…" The rest of his crew laughed as well as their captain pressed his sword a bit harder against his captive's throat. She whimpered as a thin line of crimson appeared upon her pale skin.

Norrington and the rest of the crew were helpless to do anything. Weaponless and surrounded by pirates, the only choice that they had was to remain calm and compliant. James attempted to quiet the wailing toddler in his arms, but it was doing no good. Maxine was screaming for her mother, and trying to pry free of James' grasp to get to her. But Norrington held her tight.

"It's alright, little one. Mummy's right here." Johanna spoke through her tears, hoping her voice alone would calm the child. Maxine did stop crying at the sound of her mother's voice, and she looked up to her with her arms outstretched. Johanna wanted nothing more then to hold her tiny daughter in her arms, but could do nothing more then move her fingers towards her in a sort of wave.

"Enough of this!" The pirate leader shouted, and Maxine began to cry again. "Shut her up of she's being thrown over!"

Whether it was the urgency Maxine heard in her father's hushings, or else the fearful tone of the pirate, she immediately fell silent.

The commanding officer aboard the Navy ship finally spoke up. "What is it that you want with us, you pirates?"

"For starters? Your ship, and everything on it. We'll leave you a dinghy with a chance and nothing more." The captain said. "So what be it: your ship or your lives?"

There was no room for argument, and the officers knew that. "Take the ship then, she's yours. Just allow us all to go free. Give us back Mrs. Norrington and we'll all get into a side boat and be out of your way."

"Mrs. Norrington? She's not a part of this deal. She'll be staying aboard with me. The crew and I could use some…female company." The pirate said devilishly as the hand that was holding her to him begin to drift across her. Johanna clenched her crying eyes.

"Don't touch her! Don't you dare touch my wife!" Norrington cried out, and many of his fellow crewman had let out cries of protest as well. But this only made the pirates laugh.

"Aw, well, I'm terribly sorry if this bothers you, Mr. Norrington." The pirate said without even the slightest air of apology as he stroked the side of Johanna's face. She quickly turned her head away from him, the red line on her neck turning into a fine trickle. "But you know what bothers me? When bastards like you kill my men and brethren and steal our ships right out from under us. I think its high time that the favor has been returned! Into the longboat, the lot of you! This ship has been officially commandeered and now sails under my colors!"

As he spoke, Norrington (still holding the squirming Maxine) and the rest of the crew were ushered towards the rowboat with swords to their backs. But Norrington turned around, fighting to get back to his wife. A fellow crewman took Maxine for him and got her safely onto the boat.

"Johanna!" He called out, struggling agains the pirates to get to her.

"James!" She shouted back, still held against the ruthless captain. She couldn't break free from his tight grasp and the hold of the sword against her bleeding neck. "No…James just-just go! Take Maxine and get away from here! Keep her safe!"

"No! I am not just going to leave you, Johanna."

"James, you must! You'll be killed!"

"That, miss, is where you are wrong." The captain interjected. "I wouldn't kill your dearest James until after he had the pleasure of watching you and the rest of his crew die first."

As he broke through the rest of the pirates to stand directly before the captain that threatened his wife, Norrington resorted to begging. "Please…please, just let her go…" Norrington begged in desperation.

The pirate sighed dramatically. "Very well then, if I must." He said, and pushed Johanna away from him and towards Norrington. James hurried forward in surprise to catch his stumbling wife….only to find when he caught her that a sword had been thrust through her chest. The pirate behind her laughed and pulled out his sword with a sickening sound. Together in shock, James and Johanna stared down at the bleeding wound, then up into each other's eyes.

"Johanna…No…" James breathed as she slumped forward into him. Cradling her in his arms, he sunk to his knees on the deck, unable to stem the flow of his falling tears. "…No…"

Johanna reached up and touched the side of his face, and James held her hand there against him, absorbing the moment of her final touch. She smiled softly up at him, seeming completely unaware of the pain she was in. Her eyelids began to close, and her hand slipped from his face.

"No! No, Johanna, stay with me! You're going to be alright, please, just hold on…" Norrington pleaded, hurriedly taking off his jacket and wrapping it around her, placing pressure on the fatal stab. But the blood immediately soaked through, and her head lolled to the side. "No, no! You'll make it through this. You have to make it through this. Please…"

By now, James Norrington was reduced to uncontrollable sobs, knowing full well that his wife was dying before him. "Please don't go, Jo. Maxine needs you. I need you…I love you, Johanna, please…"

But there was nothing that could be done now. With a final effort, Johanna tried her hardest to speak her last words. But her voice was gone and her mouth formed broken words. She attempted to raise her hand up to him again, but it rose only a feeble few inches before falling back down again. Her eyelids slowly closed and her body sagged as it let out its final breath.

"No! No, Johanna!" Norrington cried, realizing that she was gone. He cradled her lifeless form against him, sobbing into her ruby hair. He pressed his lips against her forehead as he had done so many times before. He didn't cared that he was surrounded by pirates, he didn't care about his crew. He just wanted to be alone with his wife.

It took several crewman to finally pull him apart from her body, and several more to lift the lifeless form. Norrington honestly couldn't remember much about what happened after that. He remembered eventually arriving at Port Royal and the explanations, but little else.

A few days later, at what would have been his promotion ceremony, a funeral was held. Nearly everyone was in attendance, dressed in their best to show their respect for the departed and the grieving family that she had left behind. Of course Maxine, being only 2, didn't quite understand what had happened and simply wanted to know why her mom wouldn't wake up and hold her again. It would be quite some time before she realized that it would never happen.

Johanna Maxine Tradewell Norrington was given the most honorable of ceremonies that there was to offer. It was the kind of funeraly reserved only for royalty, of for a member of the Navy that had been killed in duty. And at the end of the ceremony, the grieving husband was presented with his full Lieutenant stripes, a full few ranks above what he had been previously been offered. It was the least the Navy could do for their condolences. But Norrington could have never wanted it less.

But he vowed one thing. He vowed vengeance. Vengeance against any man that sailed the sea under a black flag and dared to call himself pirate. Norrington intended to use the power granted to him by the Royal Navy to ensure that every one of them ended up dead.

**AN:** yep, just thought I'd share. And now you know James Norrington


End file.
